Ghostwriting has become an essential service in today’s content-driven business world. With LinkedIn thought leadership posts, company blogs, and email newsletters driving business growth, executives and entrepreneurs need more written content than ever. Most simply don’t have time to write it themselves.
The concept is straightforward. According to Collins Dictionary, ghostwriting means writing on behalf of someone who is then credited as the author. Someone other than the actual author gets credit for the work. That’s not deceptive—it’s practical business.
The reality is that running a business and writing compelling content require completely different skillsets. Some people build successful companies and have valuable insights worth sharing. Others know how to structure ideas into clear, engaging content. Finding both skills in one person is uncommon. This gap creates a solid business opportunity for skilled writers. Business leaders get to share their expertise, writers get paid for their work, and readers get valuable content. Everyone wins.
But how do you effectively write as someone else? How do you capture their voice convincingly? Here are four essential steps that work.
1. Interview Your Source Properly
Since you’re presenting someone else’s ideas and experiences, you need to understand their material completely. Schedule a detailed conversation with prepared questions, but leave room for follow-up questions and natural discussion.
Your job isn’t to fact-check every data point—that’s your client’s responsibility. You’re there to accurately convey the information they provide. If something seems questionable, flag it with your source before making changes. It’s their reputation on the line, not yours.
A good interview does more than clarify content. You’ll pick up on how your source speaks, their favourite phrases, and their natural communication patterns. This helps you write in their authentic voice later.
2. Master Your Client’s Communication Style
As a ghostwriter, you’re invisible. That’s where the ‘ghost’ part comes from. Your writing should sound so much like your client that readers believe they wrote it themselves.
Pay attention to their vocabulary choices, sentence structure, and any signature phrases they use regularly. Do they speak formally or casually? Do they use industry jargon or plain language? Are their explanations detailed or brief?
The best way to understand someone’s style is through that initial interview. But you can supplement this by reviewing their previous content—old blog posts, LinkedIn articles, recorded presentations, or podcast appearances. In 2025, most executives have some digital footprint you can study.
3. Find the Core Themes
A thorough ghostwriting interview often produces hours of material going in multiple directions. Your job is to identify the key themes and main points your client wants to communicate. These themes are why they hired you in the first place.
Look for ideas they return to repeatedly, examples they emphasise, and problems they’re passionate about solving. Structure your writing around these core themes. Everything else is supporting detail.
4. Record Every Interview
Always get permission to record your interviews. This is standard practice in 2025, and most clients expect it. Recording lets you focus on the conversation instead of frantically taking notes. You can revisit specific quotes, catch details you missed, and verify exact phrasing.
With AI transcription tools now standard, you can quickly convert recordings to searchable text. This makes it easier to pull quotes, find specific topics, and maintain consistency across multiple pieces of content.
Building Your Ghostwriting Business
Ghostwriting isn’t complicated for a skilled writer. The challenge is setting aside your own writing style to authentically represent your client’s voice. That requires professional discipline.
Quality ghostwriters build their reputation through referrals, not bylines. Your clients won’t publicly credit you—that defeats the purpose. But they will recommend you to their network when you deliver excellent work. In the Australian market particularly, word-of-mouth referrals drive most ghostwriting opportunities.
The demand for ghostwriting services has exploded in 2025. Content marketing, thought leadership, and personal branding are now essential for business growth. Executives need consistent, high-quality content across multiple platforms—LinkedIn posts, email newsletters, industry publications, and company blogs. They can’t write it all themselves.
Virtual assistants with strong writing skills are perfectly positioned to offer ghostwriting services. You already understand your clients’ businesses, their goals, and their communication needs. Adding ghostwriting to your service offering is a natural extension that provides significant value.
Getting Started with Ghostwriting
If you’re considering ghostwriting as a service, start with these practical steps:
- Practice interviewing skills with willing subjects
- Build a portfolio of writing samples in different voices
- Set clear boundaries about attribution and confidentiality
- Establish a consistent process for client interviews
- Create templates for common content types
For businesses looking for skilled ghostwriters, Virtual Done Well connects you with experienced Australian virtual assistants who understand local business culture and can effectively represent your voice in written content. Our VAs work across all major content platforms and formats, helping you maintain consistent thought leadership without the time investment.
Contact Virtual Done Well to discuss how our ghostwriting services can support your content needs.
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